Alleged Adelanto school vandals prepare for trial

Victorville >> An expected deal for two women accused of vandalizing an Adelanto classroom isn’t happening, and the two are preparing to head to trial later this month.

Chrissy Guzman and Lori Yuan were charged on Nov. 27 on suspicion of committing $8,000 in damage with ketchup, mustard and paint to a Desert Trails Elementary School classroom either on or about June 26.

Vandalism in excess of $400 is a felony. If found guilty, the pair could face up to three years in county jail. They pleaded not guilty in January.

Those close to their case had previously indicated that the pair’s eighth appearance in Victorville Superior Court on Thursday would be their last, and that some sort of plea agreement would be reached. Witnesses — Adelanto Elementary School District’s Director of Classified Human Resources Donna Landry and District Maintenance Coordinator Phillip Gonzales — were on hand for questioning.

But after 24 minutes behind closed doors with Judge Miriam Morton, their lawyers and Deputy District Attorney Joel Buckingham emerged with different plans: The case will next be discussed on June 18 and a preliminary hearing on June 23,

Guzman and Yuan are accused of vandalizing a classroom at Desert Trails, the Adelanto Elementary School District school their children attended.

Desert Trails was the first successful use of California’s 2010 parent-trigger law. The law allows parents who gather signatures from more than 50 percent of a failing school’s parents to invoke the penalties in the federal No Child Left Behind law, including the ability to hand it over to a charter school operator.

The school was in trouble for years academically. Desert Trails received a 646 Academic Performance Index score in 2013, 64 points below the district average, and 154 points below the state’s goal of 800 API for all schools. (The score is based on the results of multiple statewide tests, and scores range from 200 to 1,000.)

In 2011, parents in the Desert Trails Parent Union — aided by Parent Revolution, the nonprofit that helped pass the 2010 parent-trigger law — began circulating petitions, and ultimately wrested control of Desert Trails away from the school district.

Members of the Desert Trails Parent Union ultimately decided to turn the school over to Debra Tarver, who operates LaVerne Preparatory Academy in nearby Hesperia.

Guzman and Yuan were vocal opponents of the parent-trigger effort, and blamed the school’s test scores on the high number of students who were new to the campus each year.

Advertisement

Yuan, who was the head of the Adelanto Planning Commission at the time of her arrest, was removed from the commission in a unanimous vote of the Adelanto City Council on Feb. 26.